Periodically throughout the Christian life we feel an
overwhelming need for guidance. Whether we're facing some big life altering
decision or we're simply in a tight spot that we don't quite know how to
manage, the need for guidance is something that we keep in the back of our
minds, bringing it to the forefront as we approach the Lord in prayer and the
study of His Word. We don't like the feeling that we're lost or wandering
around aimlessly. When I leave my house to travel somewhere that I'm unfamiliar
with I always look up directions before I leave. I like to know where I'm
going, I like to know every turn along the way. While this may be well and good
in traveling from one city to another, by and large this is not how the Lord
leads His children through this life. God is actively involved in leading His
children every step of the journey. Don't you think that life would be much
easier if once you got saved the Lord instantly revealed to you everything that
He wanted you to do? If we got an answer key that said "When this decision
presents itself choose option B not option A." or "When this
opportunity comes don't take it. Wait another two months because something
better is going to come." Wouldn't it be much easier to live life that
way? Yes, it would be. But that's not the way that the Lord has chosen to lead
us. The psalmist says in Psalm 18 - "As for God, His way is perfect."
He has chosen the perfect way of leading His people. We may think that the more
obvious ways of leading, a pillar of cloud or fire to follow, would be better,
but God has intentionally chosen the way in which He would lead us. God is
intimately involved in our lives. Think about it, if God gave us the answer key
to every decision we would ever have to make in life how often would we come to
Him in prayer? How much discernment would we have to have? How much interaction would we have to have with
the Lord? If you think about the children of Israel in the wilderness the Bible
tells us that the Lord led them with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of
fire by night. Now, how much interaction with the Lord did one of those
Israelites have to have in order to discern the Lord leading? The answer is
none at all. All they would have to do is look out the door of their tent and
see whether or not the cloud had moved. It was so easy. And yet we know that
most of that congregation perished in the wilderness because of unbelief. How
is that possible? They had the undoubted leading of God and yet they failed to
enter the promised land due to unbelief. The issue here is that the people
didn't know God. They could see where He was leading but they really didn't
have faith in Him. This gives us the very basic idea that my true need is not
necessarily the Lords guidance but rather the Lord Himself. If we are going to
discern the Lords will for our lives then that necessarily involves contact and
interaction with the Lord. We must constantly wait on Him for His guidance. He
has left us no choice but to trust Him, and that's a marvelous place to be. As
His sheep we are constantly aware of our need for the Good Shepherd. On a human
level, does a shepherd lead his sheep? Yes. The sheep might not necessarily
understand the need for every turn that the shepherd makes or why there are so
many ups and downs on the journey, but the sheep only needs to concern itself
with one thing, following the shepherd. Can we expect anything less from our
Shepherd? We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. The path on which He
leads us may not seem the most practical to us, but He knows far better than
we do.
Psalm 23 is one of the most well known chapters in the
Bible. This is the psalm where David states the wonderful truth "The Lord
is my shepherd, I shall not want." I think there is a danger for us to
become so familiar with this psalm that we don't stop to consider it. There are
wonderful truths throughout this psalm, but I just want to focus on the last
part of verse 3 - "He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His
name’s sake." Do you realize what David is saying here? God is most
assuredly leading me. I may not recognize it right now, but He is leading me. I
must concern myself with pursuing Him, knowing Him, and as I grow closer to Him
one of the byproducts will be walking in the way that He would have me to walk.
And not only does He lead me in the right paths, but He does
it "For His name's sake." When it comes to your guidance God puts His
reputation on the line. His reputation is at stake. God isn't going to lead you
because of some outstanding quality in yourself or because your such a greater
follower, but simply for the sake of His great name. It's amazing how freeing
this reality is. All the pressure is taken away. We read again in Psalm 31:3 -
"For Thou art my rock and my fortress; For Thy name’s sake Thou wilt
lead me and guide me." As I pause and reflect on the past few years I
can see beyond the shadow of a doubt how the Lord has lead me and caused me to
grow closer to Him. Looking back the Lords guidance is unmistakable. However, I
remember that while I was in the middle of various circumstances and situations
I was pleading with the Lord for His guidance. I never heard a voice speaking
to me from heaven. I was never given a sign in the clouds to go one way or the
other. More than once I questioned why a situation had to be a certain way, and
those struggles were very real. But now looking back I can see that the Lord
was guiding all the way. And over these past few years I see that I have come
to know Him in a way that I never did before. And as I continue to get to know
Him, whether I realize it or not, He is leading me in the paths of
righteousness for His names sake.
Psalm 25:5 - "Lead me in Thy truth and
teach me, for Thou art the God of my salvation; For Thee I wait all the day."
No comments:
Post a Comment